Figure 9.

CREB mutant mice exhibit a decrease in stress-activated cells that project to the VTA independent of previous drug conditioning. Although wild-type mice exhibit an increase in Fos-activated cells that project to the ventral tegmental area (doubled-labeled Fos/FG cells) in the ventral (a) and dorsal (b) BNST, lateral hypothalamus (c), and the infralimbic cortex (d), CREBαΔ mutant mice do not. No differences in Fos-activated cells that project to the VTA were seen as a result of drug treatment during CPP. *p < 0.05, ***p < 0.001 compared with No Stress condition; ##p < 0.01, ###p < 0.001 genotype comparison of wild type versus mutant within the FST groups.